The England youth international is on the periphery of Marco Silva's side but made a huge impact with his late goal against Crystal Palace last week

After splurging hundreds of millions of pounds on attacking talent that has been and gone since the departure of Romelu Lukaku last year, Everton seem to be settling on quite a fearsome front four.

In Gylfi Sigurdsson, Theo Walcott, Richarlison and Bernard, Marco Silva has crafted a versatile, varied quartet capable of asking serious questions of any defence, while a number of forwards are on the periphery, chomping at the bit to earn a start.

One of those in reserve is young striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who rose to prominence during Everton's troubles last season. Leading the line valiantly as everything crumbled around him, the Sheffield United youth academy product scored eight goals and provided six assists in all competitions for the Toffees last season, a feat matched only by now DC United talisman Wayne Rooney (11 goals, three assists).

Calvert-Lewin's encouraging displays for the troubled Merseysiders came off the back of a successful Under-20 World Cup campaign with England, in which he scored the winner in the final against Venezuela.

Powerful, pacey and hard-working, Calvert-Lewin was one of five Everton starlets in the squad; Ademola Lookman, Jonjoe Kenny, Kieran Dowell and Callum Connolly were also part of the young Lions' celebrations in South Korea.

A back injury curtailed his progress at the end of the 2017-18 season, but this term he has managed to pick up from where he left off; the 21-year-old has notched six goals for Everton and England Under-21's already this season, and is hoping his productivity will soon lead to an extended run in Silva's side.

"Every player wants to start the game, especially me. I work hard in training and the ultimate goal is to get in the starting XI," the youngster told the Liverpool Echo. "All I can do coming off the bench is affect the game and score the goals so hopefully that puts a question mark in the manager's mind.

"But I'll be doing the same as I have been in training this coming week to try and get myself in the team for the next weekend. We're playing extremely attacking football and I think as a striker you're getting chances now, I've come off the bench today and in a short period of time I've got my chance and taken it."

Calvert-Lewin's late header against Crystal Palace could prove crucial for Everton, who are on a run of three straight victories in the Premier League. Tough tests against Manchester United and Chelsea lie in wait ahead of typically gruelling Christmas period, during which the Toffees have little recovery time between fixtures.

He may be kicking his heels among the substitutes for now, but Calvert-Lewin is ready for further opportunities to prove himself to his new manager, who has plenty of food for thought.